Cold gaze
by PopcornChicken66
Summary: Drake has just met Kaya. But who is she exactly? She's different from anyone he has ever met. Could this girl possibly have the ability to make Drake feel things he's never felt before? Please R&R.
1. Nice to meet you, too

Kaya's POV

"Get rid of her, Drake." Caine said.

How the hell did I get myself into this one? How about I tell you my lovely story:

Ok so a few days after the FAYZ had started, I had made a trip down to Perdido Beach for a huge load of food at the grocery store, and then came back here. I basically lived in the middle of nowhere.

But the weeks passed and I eventually ran out of my food. I needed to get more. So, Perdido Beach it was.

Just my luck, I came when the grocery store was being raided, by I think his name was Drake, the one with the strange red whip hand, and his "soldiers".

And so I wouldn't make any trouble, a soldier pressed his gun to my head and made me walk. I ended up at Coates Academy. Drake was asking what to do with me, and...

"Get rid of her, Drake." Haven't we already been through this?

Reg. POV

"Do you have any powers?" Drake asked Kaya impatiently.

"Um... powers?" She asked politely. She cried out it pain as his whip was brought down onto her back. She studied him in her pain, looking him over. He was smiling a twisted smile.

"Why are you doing this? There has to be a reason..." The whip was brought down again; she tried to endure it, not taking her eyes off of him.

"I don't believe that you're crazy. There's something more." His eyes glinted. Another cry of pain. His smile slowly toned down to a smirk.

"I just want to know about you. Why would you... There's nothing wrong with you... I know that... I just want to know..."

She watched without fear or attempt of endurance as his whip rose. She was starting to see red. But she smiled at him.

Then she watched as Drake slowly lowered his whip to his side. With that, she blacked out.

Kaya woke up with a start. Barely any pain. But she was very drowsy. She saw medicine next to her for pain. And Drake in the corner.

Her view of Drake was a strange one. She couldn't understand him yet, and that bothered her. So she wanted, no needed, to know more about him. She also thought of him as handsome. He was handsome in general, with Sandy colored hair and grey eyes, but something lurked in those eyes, and Kaya needed to know what.

"Hi." She said, sitting beside him. He tensed up.

"So you're awake. I only kept you alive in case you are a freak. Are you or not?" He asked.

"If by 'freak' you mean do I have an abnormal, impossible power, then yes." She said.

"Well? What is it?" It seemed he wasn't very patient. He snapped at her when he was talking.

"I can control time. Make it slow down or speed up. Even stop it completely. I also get visions of the future, but I can't control those." She said. He looked deep in thought.

"Yeah, that could help a lot. Alright, you're on our side." He said. Then he tensed up even further, if it was possible, as she touched his whip.

"Weird... but kind of interesting. Where did you get it from? And how?" She asked eagerly.

"What is this, twenty questions? I don't have to tell you anything." He said. But she could tell that it was one of those stories he loved to tell.

"Pleeeeease? I'll show you my power!" Kaya said. He looked slightly interested.

"Alright fine. So, this guy Sam Temple-"

"School bus Sam! I know him!" She interrupted. He looked annoyed.

"Yeah, the lovely kid who burned my arm off, forcing me to get maimed." He snarled.

Her face was wiped of all happiness. She said nothing. She hadn't imagined Sam could do something like that. It was terrible. The agony. Poor, poor Drake.

"But then, the Gaiaphage gave me this-"He wiggled his whip arm around "-and it was all worth it!" He said, darkly gleeful.

'Some memories are more like nightmares. It's easier to cover them up with happiness or a better memory.' She thought.

"Gaiaphage?" She asked. A trigger word. She sat there quietly, listening intently to him describing this 'thing' which could be a 'him'.

"Why are you so interested in all of this? And why the hell were you at Ralph's at such a horrible time?" He hissed.

"I like to learn about people. I don't like it when people are mysterious. And I couldn't have known. I live down in the middle of nowhere, kind of near the forest. And I needed food." She said.

"How stupid. Perdido Beach is way dangerous now that we're here. And what about your family? Did they all just poof weeks ago? Of course they did..."

"No, actually. Basically my whole family is dead, except for my aunt and uncle, who didn't want custody of me, so I have nobody to miss. I stayed alone, where they couldn't find me. They probably thought I was just another runaway orphan that was going to be found dead, but I can take care of myself. I'm fourteen, and I'll be fifteen in two months." She explained.

Drake didn't show the look of pity. She didn't expect him to. But then he spoke of turning fifteen, telling her what to do to avoid the "poof". She listened yet again, nodding her way through.

"Got it? Good. Now show me that power." Drake said. Kaya nodded.

She held her palms out and closed her eyes. She thought of incredible slowness, and then thought one word: Slow. Time immediately slowed to a crawl and she grabbed an old book in a corner and balanced it on Drake's head. She played time again.

The book clattered to the floor and Drake stared at it.

"That was on my head... how did you do that?" He asked, a little bit sharply.

"I slowed time and put that on-"She fell to the ground in a sudden surge of pain.

"The pain killer is wearing off. Let's go find a first aid kit." Drake said, just barely frantic. He took her and they walked out the door.

After a few steps, Drake stopped at the sound of a voice. His eyes turned cold. Colder than before. He turned.

Caine, wasn't it? He was a few feet away from them. Kaya had been at the arrival of the Coates kids on one of her food trips. And Diana. The dark-haired, dark-eyed, beauty... that Drake seemed to hate.

"I thought I told you to get rid of her." Caine said. He turned his palms toward me. I was confused. But then Drake whipped him across the back. A straight, deep, bloody line could be seen.

Caine turned, furious, and threw his palms out. Drake went flying against the wall and crumpled in a heap. He slowly began to get up. Kaya realized that that was what Caine was trying to do to her.

"If you are going to spare her, do not keep her here. We don't have enough food to just usher in new residents." He said, a bit satisfied.

He winced, turned, and slowly crept away, Diana following. But then Diana turned halfway.

"Way to go, Drake. I thought she'd be dead. I guess you're just a bit of a softie." She said, smirking.

His fists clenched and his teeth grinded. Pure hatred surfaced in his eyes. Kaya rushed over to him.

"Are you okay?" Surprise rushed over his face as she asked this. He had forgotten that he had been hurt, and also he was not used to this question.

"Uh, yeah. It happens all the time." He said, hatred toning back to cold and mysteriousness.

"And you don't do anything about it?" She asked. It was her turn to be surprised.

"No. I can't. It's not like he won't just do it again. I may be quick, but not quick enough for him." He said, anger filling his features.

She said nothing. There was nothing she could say that would make a difference. Then she changed the subject.

"Why didn't you tell him about my powers? He would've let me-"He cut her off.

"He would treat you like a dog. Commanding you to do what he wants, and if you don't, he punishes you. And he'll use you and throw you away. He doesn't care about anyone but himself and that stupid Diana. If he didn't have that damn power, I would be ruling this place..."

He was ranting now, but she loved to listen. She seemed to be learning more and more about him as time passed. Ha-ha. Time passed. Still, she was interested.

He had stopped. One of his soldiers was talking to him. Then the soldier ran off.

"Let's go." He said.

"Where? Why am I going?" Kaya asked.

"In case I need you." He said simply.

"But where are we going?" She asked, eager now.

"Be patient, Kaya, was it? Be patient." And with that, he sauntered off, and she had no choice but to follow at his heels, noticing a gun in his hand.


	2. Could have, Should have

Drake's POV

Why the hell did I let that damn girl live? I don't know. I should have killed her.

Knowing that she might have a power, that was definitely one of the reasons. But there was another one. This girl was different, but I didn't quite know how. Those things she said... No, she didn't mean them. She was just trying to wiggle her way free of death. That's what they all do.

But what was it about this girl? It bugged me. How could she just calmly talk to me and go with me when I had _whipped_ her? We were walking to our destination, which the poor girl still didn't know. I found this funny. I took her along in case I needed her, but she could be a slight burden too.

I looked down at her, amused. It turns out that she was also in deep thought... and staring straight at me.

I moved my head to the left. Her blue eyes followed, but she snapped out of her thoughts and came back to reality. She looked straight ahead, embarrassed. Pathetic. Wait, was she blushing? Over me? There's no way in hell. I'm imagining it.

But as I looked harder, her face was slightly pink, and I was confused. Why would she blush? I looked straight ahead.

"Where are we going?" She asked, slightly whiny. This got me annoyed.

"I told you already, you'll find out." I said angrily. She showed no sign of fear. Or realization of my annoyance.

"Why can't you just tell me?" She asked. Okay, really annoyed here.

"Because if I told you, you might not go along with it." I snapped.

"But you never know! And why are you carrying a gun? Do you have any food at Coates? How far away are we? And-"

"Enough! We are going to kill Sam Temple's friends! _All_ of them!" I screamed. I had lost my temper. I didn't have much patience. This girl was almost as annoying as Diana. Almost.

She quieted down, and for an uncaring second, I thought I had hurt her feelings. But then...

"Well ok! All you had to do was say so!" She said cheerfully.

What the hell? This seriously surprised me. Aren't girls supposed to be like; Oh no! You can't kill someone! Please don't! You'll never forgive yourself! Blah, blah, blah, at times like this? Was the pain medicine affecting her? Pain medicine.

Shit! The first aid kit! I had forgotten. She cringed next to me. I looked over at her. Her face had pain written all over it, yet she still kept my pace. Maybe not such a burden after all.

I stopped. She stopped too.

"You okay? I kind of forgot the first aid kit..." I said. She nodded.

"I'll be fine. Are we almost there?" She asked. Her voice sounded almost strained. I looked ahead.

"Yeah, about a mile. Do you want to rest?" I asked, expecting the annoying 'Yes'. I wasn't being nice or considerate. But I couldn't have her collapsing, being unable to go on.

"I don't want to be trouble... I can probably wait." I hesitated. Then, reluctantly, I said:

"No trouble." And I guided her to shade. We were walking among the forest, but the trees would end soon.

Wincing, she sleepily sat down on a rock, swaying back and forth. She was totally exhausted.

"Why don't you care that I'm going to kill some people?" I asked, curiosity getting the better of me.

"Because, what happens happens. Fate. I can't control fate. I can control time. Fate is set in stone. But my visions? Those can be changed if tried. Plus, I can understand why you would want revenge after what Sam did to you. I can't possibly imagine the agony... but I can understand revenge." She said.

I was shocked. Fate, stupid. Not real. But... she knew... possibly understood... didn't compare... None of it made sense. I didn't know how to react.

Then she fell one way, and I uncrossed my arms and caught her.

She was already asleep. Great. Well, now that she was asleep...

And before I knew it, she was asleep on me as I piggy-backed her to Perdido Beach.

Kaya's POV

I woke with a start to gunfire. I was on Drake's back, and he was running. He ducked behind one of the last few trees, and I held onto his chest tight as he pointed his gun around the tree. Perdido Beach was clear in view.

"Cover your ears." He said. I slapped my hands over my ears and he fired with his whip hand. His human hand was secured tightly on my shoulder, simply keeping me safe and out of view and range.

The gunfire was loud. It would have been louder if not for my hands. Some of the soldiers cried out. I had caught a glimpse of them as we had run. I rewrapped my arms around Drake, frightened.

I heard names being called out, then scampering feet, fading into the distance. Drake watched them, and then he slowly released me and stood, helping me stand. Standing, I felt pain searing through my back. I cried out softly.

"I shouldn't have taken you. Not without the meds." It wasn't an apology but it was close.

"No, I can make it..." I gasped as images filled my mind. A vision. Because Drake was helping me stand, therefore touching me, he shared my vision.

Sam, shouting orders, guns banging, Drake cursing. We would lose. We should've taken more people. It was a simple task, but we had missed the obvious: Sam's friends wouldn't just be alone somewhere easily open to be captured.

I woke, and Drake was on his knees, holding his head. He wasn't as used to these visions as I was. I knelt beside him.

"Drake, I'm sorry. You can't be touching me when I have these visions. I know it hurts. It used to for me too." I said.

"I'm fine." He said, standing. I could tell that his migraine was hurting him.

"We're going to lose." He said. He sounded disappointed in himself. I felt bad, as though it was my fault.

"My visions can be changed. We-"

"No. We needed more people. I was stupid. I should've brought soldiers. I should have..." He trailed off.

"It's not your fault. And you weren't stupid. We can go back if you want..." I said.

"Not until we find you some pain meds. You can't make it back like this." He said. I knew he meant the same for himself, because he was still holding his head with one hand. It _was_ dark out... should we find a place to crash...?

"We have to be very sneaky though. Be quiet as a mouse. Even though that's hard for you." He said, almost and pretty much playfully. I looked in his eyes and saw just a slight tiny bit of softness, making me feel so much more comfortable.

"Ok. Quiet and stealthy it is!" I whispered, playfully, as quietly as I could in his ear. He smiled a small smile, not twisted, but just a normal smaller version of a smirk. Then he whispered:

"Let's go, Kaya."

A/N: Review please! Plus, since I never said so, Kaya was staring at Drake trying to figure him out. Also, Kaya has dark brown, thick hair with blue eyes and she has a few freckles.


	3. A delightful stay in Perdido Beach

Kaya's POV

So we very quietly crept along the beach shore, out of view. It was very dark out, and we guessed that most were sleeping. The salty waves had barely a ripple in them, but I walked with my feet in them anyway. The water was cool.

Drake, on the other hand, stalked silently beside me, his eyes viewing carefully each distant house. Then, we moved in towards a few one-story houses near us. We peeked in the windows, and found a vacant one. We climbed in through the back window.

Drake immediately began to search the house. He grabbed some sort of liquid pain killer for me, and set it down on the table in front of me.

"Don't take it yet. Sit down." He told me. I sat on a comfortable couch.

He popped two Advil and set upstairs. He came back down with a full and closed back of potato chips.

"Some older kid's room had potato chips hiding underneath his bed. Dig in." He said. I got up and walked to the kitchen. He sighed.

"What are you doing?" He asked, aggravated.

"Well, don't you want some? I am _not_ going to eat all of this by myself." I said. He didn't show temptation but still he said nothing.

I poured myself a popcorn bowl full and put the bag in his hand.

"Good, now we split it fifty-fifty!" I said cheerfully.

"I'll sleep on the couch." I said, sinking down into the pillows.

"...Fine. Take the medicine after you eat." He said blankly. He walked up the stairs.

I ate quickly, took the liquid, and fell into a deep and peaceful slumber. Almost peaceful.

Drake's POV

I was tired. Exhausted. I had taken a quick shower and now I was in the possibly senior kid's room. I stared at the chips. I wanted so badly to eat them. I took one out and put it in my mouth. Heaven. Even though it doesn't exist, it was a food heaven on Earth.

Why would this damn girl give me half of the food I gave her? I can endure hunger. I would've gone eating nothing. I finished the chips. I had been eating them as I thought. I crumpled the bag into a ball and threw it into the boy's trash can.

I fell onto the bed and almost fell asleep right there. What was it with this girl? She still didn't fear me. She should. Everyone else does. Even Caine sometimes. Why didn't this girl? I normally ended up hating or disliking the people I met. Not Kaya. But it's not like we're all buddy buddy.

Tired, I fell into an exhausted sleep. A sleep as always, containing nightmares.

Kaya's POV

I woke up in cold sweat, being shaken awake by Drake. His face was close to mine, his deep grey eyes staring at my face. I blushed, but it was too dark to see. He let go of me and I sat up.

"Are you okay? You were screaming." He asked me. I couldn't see his expression.

"Yeah... but I had visions in my sleep. It happens sometimes. I can barely remember them though." I said, rubbing my head. It throbbed violently. I was used to it.

"You need Advil? What do you remember about it?" He asked me. I stood. He helped me walk to the kitchen. I took two Advil.

"I remember... a building. That's all. I can't remember what it looks like or anything. Sorry." I said.

"Ok. How's your back?" He asked me. He placed a very gentle hand on my upper back. It comforted me from my deep headache. I never knew Drake could accomplish such a gentle touch.

"It feels okay actually. I bet if we found some gauze, I would feel all better!" I said cheerfully. He searched the house's first aid kit and pulled out some bandages.

"Ok, wanna help me put them on?" I asked him. He gave me a very strange look, with his brows furrowed. It took me a while to register.

"Oh.... right.... I forgot...." I said, looking down at my chest.

"I'll uh, go do it by myself now! Uh... bye!" I ran up the stairs in embarrassment.

Drake's POV

Wow. She's pretty clueless sometimes. It's kind of pathetic but...

I burst out laughing. This girl had no idea. She was so hyper and sometimes so air headed despite her view of things.

"Laugh it up Drake. I'll put the gauze on after I shower. Be down in like, twenty to thirty minutes. Then we can head back." I stopped laughing and put on a smirk.

"Okay hurry it up." I said. Then I thought, how would we explain this to Caine? It was so early. About five to six in the morning. I wonder what he will do. I was still of use to him, so he wouldn't kill me. But he could hurt me pretty bad. Maybe I would just go back, get my soldiers and a car, and redo this whole thing.

Yeah, that sounded good.

Kaya's POV

Drake was laughing. Real laughter. Normal laughter. Not sick or twisted or dark. Sure, it was at me, but from the looks of it, he's never really done that before. I smiled. I was glad I got to witness this.

I quickly showered and bandaged myself, and ran down the stairs. Drake had fallen asleep on the couch. He looked preserved, lost in his dreams. Or nightmares. Drake's coldness could mean nightmares. I poked him.

"Drake. Drake!" I whispered. He stirred, but didn't wake up.

"Drake, wake up!" I was shaking him now, and he shot up to sitting position. His sandy hair was messy and shaggy. It was... kind of.... cute...

"What?! Oh... um, let's go." He said, climbing up from the couch.

"I have a new plan now." He said simply, grabbing pain meds and bottles of water, sticking them in a cooler of ice.

"Ok, you have to tell me this one, otherwise I won't go." I said stubbornly. He smirked.

"Fine, don't." He said, but didn't unpack the meds as he left. How could he be so sure of himself? Humph. I'll go when I'm ready... I hesitated.

"Drake! Wait!"

---

So he told me his plan this time with lots of begging and whining from me. I knew I would have victory.

"What about Caine? What will he do if you've taken this long?" I asked him.

"If we're quiet, it's okay that we've taken more than a day. As long as we do it, he probably won't care. We just can_not_ let him know we came back. He'll probably find out your powers in that case."

"Right. Soooo.... are we almost there?" I asked. I had taken pain medicine and the bandages helped a lot so I wasn't in pain. But my feet were tired.

"Don't start whining at me again. Please just _be quiet_! We'll be there before you know it if you'd just stop thinking about it." He said, annoyed again. I was used to this now.

"Fine. I'll try..." So I kept my mouth zipped the whole time.

He was right. Before I knew it, we were standing in front of the Coates gate, ready for sneakiness again.


	4. Success, for the time being

Reg. POV

Drake and Kaya snuck through the gate of Coates and Drake grabbed Kaya's hand and ran until they were out of sight, along a side wall of Coates. Then, still holding Kaya's hand, he jogged up to a door and quietly opened it. He let go of a blushing Kaya –boy, she blushed a lot- and walked inside, Kaya following.

"Damn, I wish we had phones. That would make this so much easier." Drake muttered.

They walked silently along the hallway, jumping out of view whenever they heard footsteps. Then Kaya spotted one of Drake's soldiers. She poked Drake. He looked at her and leaned his ear towards her and she whispered:

"One of your soldiers! Just around the corner!" Drake looked and smirked.

"Thanks." He whispered back. Kaya was surprised. Drake had never thanked her for anything. Maybe he didn't mean to...

Drake whispered out his soldiers name and motioned him to come over quietly. The soldier walked up.

"Drake!" The soldier whispered.

"Ben, go get all of the other soldiers. _Quietly._ Get a car and drive out a few yards away from Coates. We'll be there. If you run into Caine, just tell him something like you are all going to help back me up." Drake whispered.

"But-"

"GO!" Drake whispered loudly. The soldier ran off.

Drake grabbed Kaya's hand and pulled her from the building, running away from Coates, and didn't stop until they were farther than just out of view. He let go and panted, smirking.

"We pulled it off!" Kaya said happily.

"No, not until those dimwits do as I told them. And they better, or I'll kill them. No joke." He said, his eyes glinting. He was serious.

"They probably will... it's not too hard..." Kaya said, trying to reassure Drake.

"You better hope they will." Drake said, cracking his whip. He sat down on the ground. Kaya sat next to him.

Drake looked deep in serious thoughts. She really wanted to know what he was thinking. Kaya began to think as well, but not as hard as Drake. She was still itching to talk.

"Um-"

"What." Drake said. Kaya supposed he didn't like when a person wouldn't just get to the point.

"So why did you get sent to Coates?" She asked, wanting to know more about his past.

"You don't want to know."

"Sure I do! That's why I asked!" She said cheerfully. His face was dark, eyes kept concealed.

"I shot a kid." Drake said. The wind blew, sending shivers up and down Kaya's body.

"Why?" She asked calmly. If this surprised him, he didn't show it.

"He was being annoying." He said.

"Oh. I see." She said. She wasn't scared or even wary.

"Were your parents angry? Did you kill him?" Kaya asked. Her tone of voice did not change.

"Only my dad knew. My parents are divorced. He just sent me off to Coates. I don't know if he was mad. The boy lived."

Kaya nodded, enjoying his openness.

"What about school for you? I mean you were off in the middle of nowhere..." He was asking questions about her. That got her happy, but she did her best to suppress it.

"Online school." She answered. Drake said nothing. She smiled a little bit, kind of glad to be having this conversation alone with him. It was calm and quiet. She was peaceful.

"So, uh... how would you feel about me calling you Drakie?" Kaya asked playfully. He seemed down, so she was trying to make him feel better. Drake smiled. A real, normal grin.

"Trying to lighten the mood?" He asked me, also playful.

"How'd ya guess?"

"Just a hunch. And no, I don't want a pet name, thank you. Drake is fine." He said smirking. He was looking at the grey sky, the wind blowing his hair in his face.

"Looks like it could rain. But it's the FAYZ so probably not. Let's hope those idiots will get here soon.

"Do you think there will ever be another thunderstorm again?" Kaya asked, slightly worried. She was slightly afraid of storms, but she had her reasons.

"Maybe. Why?" Drake asked, looking at Kaya. She avoided his gaze by looking down.

A car drove up to them and stopped. Drake climbed in and motioned for Kaya to do so as well. She proceeded.

"Took you long enough." Drake said angrily to his soldiers. There was another car behind them, carrying five people.

"Sorry, Drake. We had to find all of us and then it was hard to get cars. We didn't run into Caine though!" Ben said, hoping for forgiveness from his leader.

"Great. Drive." Drake ordered. It was just them, Ben, and another soldier in the passenger seat. Kaya leaned over and whispered to Drake:

"You should reward your soldiers. Do they do these things for you all the time?"

"They do what I tell them to do. And I'm not exactly a very grateful person. They're probably just afraid of getting killed. I have nothing to give them anyway." He whispered. His breath tickled Kaya's ear.

"But... what about promising them a gift? Maybe then they would have something to look forward to and work hard for."

"Whatever. But later. Now let's just see if they do a good job not killing us in a car crash." He hissed as Kaya was swerved into Drake. She resumed her position in her seat.

They continued to drive, almost at Perdido Beach.

A/N: So uh, yeah. I haven't updated in a while. I'm really, really sorry. But more is coming, and soon!


	5. Fading Out

Kaya's POV

Perdido Beach. We were there. We stopped out of view, and Drake spoke.

"Ok you guys, a few of you new soldiers are going to set a distraction. Sam has never seen you before. Then, you are to lead the hostages to the McDonalds freezer, telling them that Albert wants them at the McClub to help him set up or something. Get Astrid, Quinn, and if possible, Edilio. Edilio will be hard though, so watch out. And Kaya, you come with me. You should stay in the back and if you hear too much commotion, stop time and use this."

Drake handed me a baseball bat. I took it, unsure if I could actually use it. But he had this very well thought out. We drove silently to the McClub. Drake took me around back while some soldiers set out, more quickly now that they had been threatened with a whip.

"Are you ready?" He asked. I looked at him, then all around me. It was evening, and a soft orange and pink glow radiated off of everything. I nodded slowly.

"Are you even going to be able to use that?" He asked me, pointing to the bat in my hand.

"I don't think so..." I said. He nodded.

"Ok, just do what you can. Be careful, okay?" He said.

"_Me_ be careful? You're going off to fight against people with powers and possibly kill hostages, putting your life in danger! _You're_ the one who should be careful!" I said, halfway playful, but also serious. He snickered.

"Yeah, okay. I need to watch out for myself!" He laughed and was about to leave when we heard talking, then muffled screams, then a door slamming.

"We've got Astrid. That will definitely get Sam to come. He'll be here soon enough." Drake said with a smirk.

Sam and Astrid? Hmmmm, I never would have thought of them as a couple..." I said.

"How do you know Sam and Astrid anyway if you were on an online school?"

"I was a dropout. Around the beginning of the year. I was on the bus Sam saved though." I saw a flash of anger in his eyes.

"Y'know, not like it matters." I added quickly.

"So then, your parents or family died recently." He said quietly. I lowered my head.

"Yeah… But anyway, if Coates and Perdido Beach have been enemies for so long, why haven't you acted earlier?" I asked.

"Oh, we have. We almost succeeded, certainly killed enough kids. But we didn't, of course. No, instead we're rotting and starving in Coates, and as much as I hate to admit it, these plans are a mere act of desperation."

Shouting. I could hear the front door burst open.

"Quinn." Drake stated.

Freezer door slamming. Gunshot. I realized that something was wrong.

Drake lunged at the back door, but was lifted up along with me a few feet away from him. Gravity had ceased.

"Dekka." Drake instantly said, and I noticed an African-American girl holding her hands in the air, palms out, Sam standing next to her.

Drake reached for his gun, but it was just outside of his reach.

We were lifted about 15 feet in the air, and Drake looked over at me, eyes widened.

Dekka put gravity back on and we fell, but Drake grabbed me and cradled me before we hit the ground. His head made a sickening crunch. My weight had added to Drake's landing. Drake had made it so I landed on top of him. I was not hurt. He was unconscious.

I got up and looked at him. His head had a horrible wound that looked like a dent. I could barely look at him like this.

"Kaya. You're the girl who dropped out of school. I'm going to need you to move." Sam said to me.

"No." I said firmly. I then realized that tears were streaming down my face. Drake was still breathing. But how long could he last?

"Kaya, he needs to die. He's dangerous. He will hurt you too if he needs to."

"No. I bet you barely even know him… I won't move!"

"Kaya, please."

"No!" I shouted. I wouldn't let Drake be killed. He could still live. Sam held out his palms.

"Kaya, move now or I will do something both you and I will regret."

"No."

"Last chance."

"I said no."

"Then I'm sorry." Sam's face had an extreme look of sadness and guilt on it. He would kill me too. Or trick me. Either way, he would kill Drake.

Sam squeezed his eyes shut and a green light began to shoot from his hands.

"Stop!" I shrieked at the top of my lungs. I squeezed my eyes shut as tight as they could go. I was sobbing, holding Drake close to me. When nothing happened, I slowly opened my eyes.

I had frozen time. Sam had generated a green light that looked similar to fire pointed directly at me and Drake. The light was inches from my face. I quickly grabbed Drake and pulled him. I couldn't do it all by myself.

So I tried unfreezing a soldier. It worked. I unfroze two others and told them to carry Drake to the car. They did as I asked. I didn't help because I didn't want to unfreeze Drake and have him run out of time...

The soldiers stared at Drake's head wound.

"Shit, that's deep. How did he get this?" One asked me. I glared at him.

"Does it matter? What are we going to do?" I asked, frantic now.

"Maybe we should take him to Lana, what do you think?" Now the soldiers were talking to each other.

"Last I heard she headed up to Clifftop."

"Lana? Who's that?" I asked.

"She's a healer. Well really, The Healer, 'cause she's the only one."

"You're saying that she can heal Drake's injuries?" I asked eagerly.

"Yeah. The thing is, whether she'll-"

"Let's go! Now!" I urged. They began to drive.

Then we were at Clifftop. I had fast-forwarded time. I ran inside while the soldiers laid Drake down on the grass.

I searched the computer until I found her room number, and raced up to her door and was banging on it in a second. Then I remembered. Right. I unfroze time.

A girl opened the door and a dog ran out to greet me. I gave him a small pat, but that was all.

"Are you Lana, A.k.a. The healer?"

"Yes. Why?"

"You _have_ to help me!"


	6. The Healer

Reg. POV

"What do you need help with? Is somebody hurt?" Lana asked.

"Yes. Please help him!" Kaya cried. She had stopped sobbing, but she knew it was probably obvious that she had been.

"Ok, show me the way."

Kaya led Lana down to the open grass area in front of Clifftop. Lana froze when she saw who was on the ground.

"You want me to heal Drake Merwin?" She asked, eying Kaya suspiciously.

"Yes, please."

"Why? He is a sick and twisted monster. You don't want to get involved with him."

"Too late. I'm sorry, but he is starting to die. Could you please heal him now?" Kaya asked as politely as she could. She'd noticed that Drake wasn't exactly the most loved person around the FAYZ.

"Drake is a person who needs to die. I'd be doing a crime by healing him."

"In case you haven't noticed, there aren't exactly lawsuits or prisons anymore. I... Just... please." Kaya looked down at Drake, icy fear stabbing at her chest. When she looked at Drake's blood on her hands, she shivered.

Lana pursed her lips. Her soft spot was caving in. She was starting to feel sorry for the girl.

"Please. You'll have caused his death." Kaya said, her voice cracking at the word death.

"I don't care."

"Please! Come on! Heal him." Kaya said forcefully, but only to set her emotions on anger instead of sadness. Lana sighed and slowly placed her hand on the back of Drake's head.

Kaya watched with astonishment as the blood stopped flowing from his head and the "dent" began to take full shape again. After that was finished, she worked on his spine bone, which seemed pretty messed up as well, now that Kaya looked harder.

"Thank you..." Kaya said softly, too happy for more words. Lana patted her shoulder.

"I can assure you, it won't happen again. I highly doubt he won't be killed sooner or later."

Then Lana set Drake down almost roughly and walked back inside, muttering to herself. The soldiers had gone to keep watch. Drake slowly woke.

"How the- what are we doing here? What happened to Sam? And Dekka?" Drake asked, propping himself up on his elbows. Well, one elbow and his whip hand...

"Drake..." Kaya hugged him close, tears streaming down her cheeks again, and Kaya wondered if they were from relief or joy. Drake let her hold him, surprised by her actions.

"Why are you crying?" Drake asked.

"Because I didn't want you to die. I almost thought it was over for you..."

After a while holding him, she pulled away. He was uncertain what to make of this.

"No one has ever... You idiot." Drake muttered. Kaya smiled softly.

"Thanks for saving me Drake." Kaya said, she was propping herself up next to him now.

"Anytime. Besides, I'm pretty sure you just saved mine." He said. Kaya playfully shoved him.

"But don't ever do it again! Almost dying over me. I swear!" She said, scolding him now. He was smirking.

The sun was rising. It was beautiful. Well at least in Kaya's point of view. She couldn't know what Drake was thinking.

But then both Drake and Kaya realized how tired they were, especially Drake. But Drake refused to fall asleep.

"I failed again. Over that damn Dekka this time. Caine doesn't know I failed the first time- or at least would have failed if we'd kept going - but I don't know. I wonder how Caine would feel about doing it himself for once. Even with his whole crazy thing over the Gaiaphage. He's getting slightly better though. Soon, I _will_ run this place."

"I'm sure you will Drake. Just be patient." Kaya said, snickering a little.

"Are you mocking me?"

"No, no. I'm just saying." Kaya said smiling.

"Well you better not be. " Drake was lying relaxed on his hand behind his head. He was smirking. Kaya took the same position.

"Your head doesn't hurt at all?" Kaya asked worriedly.

"No. It's amazing the things Lana can do." Drake replied distantly. And before Kaya knew it, he was asleep.

Kaya relaxed even more and fell asleep as well, with one last glance at Drake.

Reg. POV

Kaya awoke to the sound of voices.

"You wake him up!"

"No, you wake him up!"

"You two sort this out. There is no way I am going to wake him up. I will die if I do it. Literally."

"Or he'll just whip us a million times."

"Yeah, you're right. He'll probably hurt all of us."

Kaya opened her eyes, sitting up and looking at the soldiers. Her or Drake must have rolled over in their sleep, because he was now a few feet away.

"Hey, get the girl to wake him up!" A guy whispered.

"I'm not your guinea pig! I will not experiment for you." Kaya said angrily.

"Aw, c'mon! Drake might not get as mad at you!"

"_As_ mad at me?"

"Please! Do you want to save our lives?" The youngest soldier pleaded.

"You're over exaggerating. But fine. What's the worst that could happen?"

The boys ran away and shouted from their location:

"Okay, we'll watch from here!"

"Wussies. I hope they know how to handle a gun or they're hopeless as Drake's soldiers." Kaya noticed it was kind of early, maybe mid-afternoon.

She walked over to Drake and bent down. He looked preserved again. She looked over to the soldiers. No where in sight. She sighed.

"Drake?" Kaya shook him a little. He was having a nightmare, Kaya knew.

"Drake... Drake? Drake!" She said, shaking him more. He broke out in cold sweat and shot up again, like before. He was breathing heavily. He looked at me, and then looked away, saying nothing.

"Are you okay?" Kaya asked, knowing for sure that he wasn't.

"Uh, yeah. I'm fine. Where are my soldiers?" I rolled my eyes.

"They ran off, afraid to wake you. They are such wimps. How did they become your soldiers?" Kaya said. Drake laughed darkly.

"Their only fear is me. They're best friends, and have a pretty nice shot. And that's praise coming from me."

"Yeah, I guess that's why I chose to unfreeze them. They were all close together."

"Unfreeze?"

"Yeah. I froze time while Sam was shooting his fire sparkles at us. Then, I unfroze just those three to help get you in the car. That's how we got you here." Drake was staring at her, disbelieving.

"Why didn't you move?" He sounded almost angry now.

"Because I didn't want to leave you..." Kaya said.

"Kaya, you need to keep yourself alive! I sacrificed my life for yours. And you were just going to throw it away over _me_? Why? I'll probably be killed one of these days in the FAYZ. You don't have any idea what you've gotten yourself into by meeting me..." The last few parts Drake said were quiet. And the last sentence seemed more like a spoken thought.

"I'm sorry. I didn't want you to die when you had a chance of living..."

"Why? What do I matter? No one cares if I die! No one ever has." Drake shouted. Kaya was quiet for several seconds and Drake thought she wasn't going to say anything at all. He didn't care either. But then:

"You..." Kaya let out a soft sigh.

"You matter to me, Drake. I care about you. And you will not die. Not if I can help it." Kaya said, her eyes were closed, in memory of the frightening seconds she thought Drake could die, the sadness of seeing him that way. The thought of going back to life without him.

Drake was silent for a moment, wrapping his head around this.

"Thank you, Kaya." Drake said, barely even a whisper. But she heard it, pretending she didn't. She smiled widely. It was the second time he had showed her gratitude... ever.

'_You're welcome Drake. And it's the complete truth. Maybe not the whole truth, but it's true.'_ Kaya thought. She frowned at 'whole truth'. Where did that come from?

There was something else. But she didn't know what yet. And it bugged her. A lot.


	7. Breaking Away

Drake's POV

Kaya just saved my life. I still had things to do so it's a good thing. But why? Shouldn't she hate me like all of the others? Don't I treat her like the rest? But if I don't, why not? What's so special about her?

I was confused. Every single person that knew me hated me. My dad and probably mom from the shooting, Caine, Diana, Sam, my teachers. Everyone. But why not Kaya? Why doesn't she fear me? She should fear me. I am capable of things she couldn't even imagine.

But why did she say she cares about me? Do I feel the same way? Yeah right. Me, Drake Merwin, care for someone. Uh, no. But doubt washed over me as I disagreed with myself.

We were driving to who knows where. Maybe Coates. I would probably get a good beating from Caine. Yay.

But where else was there to go? Living up in the middle of nowhere like Kaya did is too boring. Not enough action. I obviously was not welcome at Perdido Beach. The FAYZ is way too limited. I watched the scenery out of my window. It was familiar. To Coates it was.

I did not like failure. I despised it. And I especially hated to admit it. Failure was a terrible thing. We were outside of Coates now. We stopped to the left of the gate.

"Let Kaya out. We're going back." I said. Kaya didn't move.

"Why?" Kaya asked.

"Because I was sent for a reason, and I'm going to fulfill my task."

"Fine but why can't I go?" She asked. I was slightly irritated. This was the reason she was asking?

"Because, Kaya. It's most likely safer here. I won't make mistakes this time." I said firmly. She reached her hand out and touched my arm. Then time slowed around us. The soldiers could no longer hear. There was an echo.

"Kaya, when I got hurt, it was for you. I do not want to put us in those situations anymore. You almost got hurt too. I just... don't want..." I looked down.

"But, I can stop being a burden! Plus, what am I going to do here? I know no one. Caine might not accept my residence. One more person equals one more mouth to feed, Drake. Unless you go with me or I go with you, I'm in danger as well. I know I am of use to you. You don't want me to die."

I heaved a sigh. I did not know what to do. It was irritating how she proved to be right so many times.

"Which one would you prefer?" I droned.

"Here. I want to see more of Coates. Plus, it gives you a chance to test your soldiers and give them that reward." She said. Ugh. That again.

"Fine. Play time." I said reluctantly as I began to climb out of the car with her. She held out her palm. Time played back to normal speed.

"Prove yourselves. Go kill them." I ordered the soldiers. Surprise crossed their face. It had only been about two seconds to them. Then I slammed the door.

Kaya's POV

Coates is amazing. Sure, it's kind of a dump now, but it is so big. I could tell it had once been a very decorative and cozy place. Drake was very grumpy though.

I knew he didn't want me to get hurt because I was of big use to him. That was the reason, wasn't it? It was almost as if I was one of his soldiers. But he had wanted to go. To prove how much stronger he is getting to Caine and that he would take over.

And maybe he wanted to kill.

Did he? He was sadistic, wasn't he? I had even seen him whip his soldiers. So why hasn't he hurt me since that one day we met? It just didn't make sense. We were inside now.

"Where are we going?" I asked Drake. He shrugged.

"Probably to get you a room." He said simply.

We continued to walk and I looked all around me. There weren't that many people there, but the ones I saw backed away or froze or hid or something when they saw Drake. He really was feared by everyone. He _should_ be feared by me too...

"Here." Drake stopped in front of a door. I hadn't realized how long we had walked.

I stepped inside and he stayed at the doorway as I checked it out. One double-bed, a lamp, a full-length mirror, a closed window, a dresser, and a bathroom. Nothing special.

"Thanks." I told him. He nodded and left. After a long shower, I flopped onto the bed and slept for a long time.

I woke with a start. It was night time, and really late too. I looked on a clock and it was one in the morning. I sighed and got up. I was no longer tired. So now what?

I walked to the doorway of my room and opened the door. There weren't many lights on around my area, so it was dark and I couldn't see much. Pure silence. I began to walk down the halls.

After many minutes of exploring I stopped when I heard footsteps.

"Hello?" I called out.

"Aw, what the hell Kaya."

I turned with relief at the sound of the familiar voice, and there stood Drake, face to face with me, and two sleepy and annoyed soldiers.

"Uh... Drake?" said a soldier.

"Go back to bed." Drake said irritably. They ran off.

"_What_ are you doing out here?" Drake said harshly.

"Just taking a walk." I said.

"At one thirty in the morning?" He said, yawning.

"I-I'm really sorry. I just... wanted to explore and..."

"Whatever. Just don't do it again." He said distantly.

"Wow, you really scared me. I thought I was going to make some sort of big commotion and that maybe it was someone other than you." I said, a little tired myself.

"No, I do all of the dirty work around here." He said. I nodded. Then I realized just how close we were, though he didn't seem too. He had that messy bed hair again.

"Drake?" I asked uncertainly.

"Yeah?"

"Um... well, I just wanted to say... thank you for staying by my side. You've saved me and kept me safe, even if it was just because I was of use to you." He looked at me, all tiredness gone.

"Uh, your welcome I guess... but it was just for that reason you know." He said. I nodded. Then I pulled myself a little closer to him.

"Kaya." He said, slightly a warning, finally seeing the closeness as well.

"Drake..."

"Don't…" I leaned up on my tip toes so that my face was slightly more level with his. I had no idea what I was doing.

"Kaya." He repeated.

He didn't stop me, but didn't look me in the eye.

Then I kissed him.

He obviously was not expecting it. He almost stumbled backwards in surprise, but I caught him. I opened my eyes slightly to see his eyes wide open. He was not kissing back. Just as I was about to pull away, he closed his eyes and began to kiss me as well.

His lips were softer than I expected. I placed one hand gently in his hair that I loved so much. He put his hand on my back. It was a natural, non-awkward kiss.

I surged with joy. I felt as if we were floating, but then he tumbled back to ground as we pulled away. His eyes were sort of wide with uncertainty and he was looking away. I stepped back sheepishly.

"Sorry... I uh…" I muttered. He said nothing, just got to his feet. Then about a minute of silence later, Caine came walking through.

"Drake, I heard a rumor that you were back." Caine said, eying me suspiciously.

"Is it true?" Drake hissed.

"Apparently. Did you accomplish what I told you to do?" He inquired.

"Most of it. Some of my soldiers are off doing the rest. There was an accident with a kid and he went to Lana, and we took him back here. I was the only one who knew how to drive. The rest will return soon." Drake mumbled.

"Fine. Will you come see me in another room? _Alone?_" Caine said, his question for Drake but pointed at me.

"Sure." Drake followed off with Caine to a nearby room, though it wasn't a bedroom.

I stared after them. Then I slowly raised two fingers to my lips.


	8. Shattered Past

Reg. POV

Caine dragged Drake into a room well away from Kaya.

"What do you want?" Drake snapped.

"I just want to check something." Caine said. He grabbed a nearby eleven year old looking boy from outside and shoved him at Drake.

"Whip him." Drake raised his whip and lashed it down onto the boy's shoulder. The boy cried out.

"Kill him." Caine said. Drake wrapped his whip arm around the boy's neck and began to strangle him.

"Okay, stop. Leave kid." Caine said, and the little boy sobbed and ran away. Drake glared at Caine.

"Okay, great. And?" Drake said impatiently.

"That girl is trying to change you. She probably will, and she probably already has in some ways. Don't let her, or I might just have to get her out of the way. Glad to have this talk with you. It's a good thing I didn't have to knock some sense into you." Caine stated. Drake was furious. He fumed with suppressed anger.

"Do not be angry, Drake. I only told you. No threats. Just remember what I said the next time she tries to kiss you again." Then Caine sauntered off without another word.

Drake stood there, staring at the wall with an emotionless face. His features almost turned sad, but then he ran back to his room. He let his anger wash over him, but didn't lash it out. He tried to calm himself down.

He now hated Caine even more, if it was possible. Drake wanted to kill him more badly than before. Plus, he had threatened Kaya's life. Drake shuddered. Why should he care? He would kill her himself if needed.

Drake sighed and threw open his window. He leaned out and the very light breeze swayed his hair gently. He stared up at the stars and the moon. Not in admiration, but just to look at something. It was one normal thing to look at in the FAYZ. He possibly missed the sound of whooshing cars. But few people drove now.

Drake didn't know too much about feelings, but he knew he felt different. It had been so unexpected. Did Kaya really like him that way? It was too soon… they hadn't even known each other for that long…

Then, leaving the window open, Drake climbed into bed. He would get very few hours of sleep, but that was the least of his worries.

He had to protect Kaya with his life. Why? He didn't know yet.

Kaya's POV

I hadn't slept all night. It was that god damned attempt of a kiss. I hadn't even known him for that long! I was just so mindless… I wish I could take it back. But that doesn't necessarily mean that I don't wish he didn't pull away… What did Caine say to him anyway? Realizing I was getting no answers, I sighed, jumping out of bed and getting ready to face Drake.

After I had done the morning essentials, I slowly emerged, searching all over for Drake. Nope. So, I went outside for a bit, taking in the sunlight.

I didn't know where to go. I sat on the curb, pulling out my iPod, and began to sing to myself. I had nothing better to do. I had figured Drake had gone out, so I was waiting for him to come back.

I didn't hear the footsteps behind me. But then Drake snatched up my iPod and scrolled through it. I stared at him.

"What's this?" He asked, clicking play. The song filled my ears. No words, just that familiar melody. My mouth dropped open and I froze. I hadn't heard that song since…

I was loosing control, shaking. I tried so hard, but eventually, face flushed, I began to cry.

"Kaya, what are you doing?" He asked me, sounding alarmed. But I couldn't stop. Couldn't….

Drake's POV

I didn't know what to do. I sat down by her, pausing her iPod. I didn't usually deal with emotional tears. She was shaking uncontrollably all over, and she fell on the ground, curled into a ball. This was often a position my victims took, so I felt like I had hurt her.

"Kaya, take what's left of your dignity and stand up." I said sharply. I wouldn't have snapped at her if I didn't feel like this right now.

She slowly tried, but her legs wobbled, so I stood her up straight, and helped her over to a big tree across from Coates.

I sat against a small tree while she kept at it, until slowly, the sobs died to muffled tears, to hiccups, to silence.

"Kaya?" I asked cautiously.

She cleared her throat. "Yeah?"

"What just happened?" I asked.

Kaya's POV

Oh shit! I'm so embarrassed! I had broken down, shattered into the million pieces that I had tried so hard to glue together, but they always fell apart at some point. And in front of Drake. I sighed; my face flushed, and looked away.

"My dad… he was abusive. But only to my mother. Every time he beat her, I would cry. But she would gather all of her strength, come into my room, and play me a song she had recorded on her guitar, in a CD player. I burned the song onto my ipod… But anyway, When he drunkenly swiped at me with a knife, leaving me this scar-" I lifted up my shirt, showing him the long, ugly scar on my stomach. "-my mom divorced him, and a dozing truck driver hit the taxi my dad was in.

"My mom committed suicide. My grand parents had died of old age, and I was left alone. My dad was hated by his brother, so I couldn't live with them either. They were convinced I would be as bad as him. It's kind of pathetic how I can't control myself over some song, but… I miss her."

Drake looked at me. Then, he said exactly what I wanted him to say. Not sorry, just more about _his_ past.

"My dad always sort of thought I was screwed up. He had no interest in me. My mom had hated me since I was born, thinking of me as a burden. I remember the disgusted look she always had on her face when she saw me.

"She would've gotten an abortion, but it was too late once she found out she was pregnant. Finally, she left my dad, all because of me, so my dad hated me too. I had no friends, nothing, because I've always been like… this. He turned into an alcoholic, and a drug user. He disgusted me, and I disgusted him. As soon as he found out about Coates, he shipped me off."

We both sat quietly. I gulped. I loathed self pity, and Drake wanted none. So I just sat there, trying to block out memories, as I always do.

Drake is going to talk to Caine. The soldiers came back. He told me not to come. As if that would stop me.

So I followed.

Caine stared intently at Drake for a while. Then,

"Your mission wasn't completed, Drake."

Drake opened his mouth, but was thrown against the wall. I became angry. I cut off my sudden intake of breath with my hand.

Once he got to his feet again, Caine cut Drake's sentence off.

"I don't want it to happen again. I'm not sure what to do with you anymore. A tremendous battle will soon break out between Perdido Beach and Coates. We will lose if we're not prepared. So, I'm constructing a new plan. Until it's finished, I want you to stay out of my way and keep training your soldiers. Oh and that girl-"

My heart sped up.

"Kaya." Drake said. Caine glared, throwing Drake to the ceiling.

"I didn't ask for her name. Now as I was saying, 'Kaya', will also stay out of your way. I don't want you to become any different Drake. As far as I'm concerned, she's as good as dead. I don't want to see her."

Drake seethed with anger. He opened his mouth, but Caine stopped him.

"You may go." He said. Drake slammed the door behind him. He sprinted away, so fast he was just a blur. I knew he was quick, but this surprised me. He was the fastest person I had ever seen in my life. He ran out the front doors of Coates and out of my sight.

So, why not follow?

A/N: Oh my god, I just realized something. I actually wrote that last chapter a very long time ago, and was just waiting to upload for suspense. But I did not mean to upload that chapter. See, it's changed here on Microsoft Word, but apparently I uploaded the wrong one. I realized that it wasn't like Drake to let that happen, but tell me, did you like that, or do you want me to update the chapter I edited? Please tell me!


	9. Visions From the Past

Kaya's POV

I followed, or at least tried to. He had disappeared once I left Coates to look for him. I walked and walked until I got tired and sat on a tree stump. I thought I heard a voice, but I couldn't acknowledge it, because I fell to the floor with a vision.

Writhing on the filthy forest floor, I saw horrible sights. Drake thrown into a mine shaft, which collapsed on him, the Gaiaphage using Lana to heal Drake. Back from the dead, covered in dirt. Drake lashing, whipping. Drake killing, laughing. Drake tied down, screaming threats.

And for the first time, a vision from the past. Maybe Drake's presence next to me caused it.

I saw Sam shooting a ray of green fire-like light from his hands, catching Drake's arm on fire. He screamed, a sound piercing my brain, and ran.

Reg. POV

Next she saw Drake's mangled, burned, useless arm, and him lying on the floor, a saw cutting through the bones and dead skin and flesh as he woke up several times from his unconsciousness and shrieked shrilly. She saw Diana's gleeful face and instantly hated Diana. With a passion. She saw the tears running from Drake's eyes, images and sounds pumping into her brain permanently. She wanted it to stop. Stop. STOP.

Kaya sat up so quickly, it surprised Drake. She took a sharp intake of air and let out an anguished sound from her terrible migraine. The worst yet. Headache and vision.

Tears streamed down her face, and she fell on the ground, panting and crying and squirming.

"Kaya. Kaya…? Kaya!" Drake said, his voice rising. But she couldn't stop, yet again.

Once she had calmed enough to speak, she said:

"I… I just saw…" She let out a shaky sigh.

"I saw a vision from the past. I saw…. I saw what you went through Drake." She said, her eyes on his whip arm.

Drake stayed silent, his eyes completely cold and unrevealing.

"I could never understand. All I can say is… Drake, you are the bravest person I have ever met." She said. He stayed quiet for quite a while.

Drake squeezed his eyes shut, probably trying to block out the images from his head. But that was something you couldn't forget.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have mentioned it."

"No Kaya. Sam will be the sorry one. And I'm sorry you had to see that. That's a big part of my dignity right there, and also a broken off piece of me that cannot be returned, like many others." He said.

Kaya said nothing.

"Is that all you saw?" He asked.

"Yes." She lied. Because she would stop it. Her visions could be changed. She knew she could. She had to.

She wouldn't let Drake die.

"We're leaving." Drake said. This took Kaya by surprise.

"What…?" She asked, confused. They were still sitting in the forest.

"We're leaving Coates."

"And going where…?" She asked.

"I don't know. Let's get a car." He said, and rose to his feet. She followed suit.

"Okay."

"Are you gonna be alright?" He asked. Images of her vision from the past entered her head.

"I'm not sure. Let's just go." She said, and they walked together.

"Hey, Drake?" Kaya asked.

"What?"

"Well what if we sneak into a house at Perdido Beach? I can go get all of our food and everything, and if Sam remembers me, I'll tell him I left Coates."

"So then, what? I'm stuck in the house all day?" He asked, a bit harshly. Clearly he wasn't in a good mood with the memory of losing his arm.

"No, we can travel at night and park the car in a garage or something, like I go inside and open it and you park it, then you can maybe go places, or you can go out back or something. I mean, just temporarily, until I can think of something better... but we don't have to." She said, watching him ponder the plan.

"I guess it couldn't hurt to try it." He said. She smiled.

"Yay!" She cheered, before figuring out how childish that sounded. She blushed slightly and bit her lip, risking a glance at Drake. He was just smirking and shaking his head.

A/N: Okay, so I've written up to chapter 11, and I'm really excited for you to read the next two chapters. :) Remember, the faster you review, the faster I update! Anyway, if you want to see the other version f the last chapter, just private message me and I'll send it to you. Thanks for reading!

P.S. Yes, yes, this is my shortest chapter. But the next one is long, and so is the next one after that!


	10. Joining the Party

Kaya's POV

We stole the car with the most gas and drove towards Perdido Beach.

Something kept egging my mind. That one night when I … kissed Drake. But that wasn't me. I would never do that. I just, did but it was like….

Watching from another body.

A shiver assaulted my spine. That's impossible. I told myself not to be dumb, embarrassed to even have thought that.

"_What_ are you thinking about?" Drake asked, snapping me back to reality.

"What?" I asked, my brain scrambling to settle itself.

"You were staring off into space, smiling to yourself, and your face was red." He said, and he was holding back a laugh.

"Oh… uh… nothing. Just some memory."

"If you say so." He said.

We were pulling up to Perdido Beach now. Then we saw a figure. Drake slammed on the brakes and climbed in the backseat, hiding himself.

"Get in the driver's seat and drive." He instructed. I did, but had a hard time, as I had never driven before.

"Gee, take your time." He said. I glared at him.

"Shut up."

The girl motioned for me to roll down my window. I did.

"Hello. Where did you come from?" She asked.

"Actually, I was in Coates, but then I escaped and I was hoping to live here, as they aren't exactly the most… pleasant people to be around." I said smoothly.

"Why'd you stop back there?"

"Oh, well I wasn't paying much attention, and when I saw you, you scared me. So I guess natural instinct was to push on the brakes." I answered.

"I see. And who are you?" She asked.

"I'm Kaya Lacon. And you?"

"June Price."

"Nice to meet you, June." I said, flashing a smile.

"That was smooth. But I'm afraid I can't let you go with Drake Merwin in the back seat." She said.

All was quiet. Then I froze time, and unfroze Drake.

"Must be a freak. Get her in the front seat." He said. I did as told. He wrapped his whip arm around her neck, and I played time. She gasped.

"Don't move or you die. You come with us, and you don't tell anyone that I am here. Got it? Great. Drive, Kaya."

I did. It was easy, actually. Not the driving. The getting to a house. No guards or anything. I wondered if something was going on. We approached the same vacant house that we stayed in before, and I got out, went inside, and opened the garage door, which Drake pulled into with his hand, his whip still curled around June's neck.

I shut the garage door and they got out.

June was a cute girl, and was around the same age as us. She had golden blonde waves, a heart shaped face, and illuminate hazel eyes. She was petite, a bit shorter than me, but her confidence was sky high.

"How did you know I was in the car?" Drake demanded.

"Why should I tell you?" She asked bravely.

"Well, there's the fact that you will be dead in a second if you don't." He said. She smirked.

"With anyone but you, I'd think the person was bluffing. Fine. I read minds." She said slyly.

"At all times?" I asked.

"No, I choose whose mind I want to read. I can only read one at a time though. I will never, ever, choose your mind to read, Drake." She said darkly. He just grinned his shark grin.

"How do we know you're not lying?" I asked. She turned to me, her eyebrow raised.

"Uh, hm. You have a scar on your stomach, a dirty past, you're an orphan, and um… apparently you guys kissed." She peered at Drake, then me. She laughed, and I blushed.

"Wow. Okay, that should be enough proof that I can read minds."

Drake glanced at me for a fleeting second, then walked up to June and slithered his arm around her neck, yet again, squeezing a little this time. Her smile faded and she just stared at Drake with a blank face.

"Shut the hell up. Now, what shall we do with you?" He asked, darkly cheerful.

We all sat in the living room; me and June on the couch and Drake on an armchair next to the couch.

"Okay look, before you say anything, I'm not on Perdido Beach's side. I'm neutral. I don't take sides. This town has done nothing to make me loyal to it. So, if you want, I'll join you.

"It was getting really boring around here anyway. I could be of good use to you. Plus, I have resources that can get you guys some food and fresh clothes. So what do you say?" June said.

I was taken back by this speech. But Drake responded right away.

"How do we know we can trust you?" He asked.

"Well, considering you can kill me in a snap if I betray you, I think that's enough reason for me to stick with you."

"I don't like you. And I still don't trust you. But…Fine. Remember what you said. I won't hesitate to kill you."

June rose to her feet and ran up the stairs, then came back down briefly after.

"Only a two bedroom house. Darn. I guess I'll have to bunk with you, Drake." She said with a wink. I glared hard at her and he just gave her a disbelieving look.

"I think Kaya would be more up for that. Anyway, if you're with us, get started. Go get food or whatever." He said.

"Okay!" She said cheerfully, not complaining about the late time, and skipped towards the door. I noticed she brushed against Drake's arm on purpose, and it ticked me off. What was with this love-hate card she was playing?

Once she was gone, Drake walked past me without a word.

"Where are you going?" I asked.

"To sleep. It's two in the morning. You should probably get some rest too." He said.

"Right. 'Night!" I said. He said nothing. Awkward, of course.

He closed his door.

I couldn't sleep. I was lying awake, staring at the ceiling, when I heard a noise. Hoping it was Drake, I got up and left the room, walking down the stairs only to find June in the kitchen, unloading a little bit of food from some bags.

"Hey there, Kaya." She said without turning around.

"Hi June… What are you doing?"

"Well, what are you doing? I went to get food. Oh, and here." She said, throwing me a few pairs of fresh clothes.

"Thanks. And I just… couldn't sleep." I said.

"I see. So…" She said while putting the food in cabinets.

"Is there anything uh, going on with you and whip boy up there?" June asked me.

"Um… I… I'm not sure. I mean, I think we're friends, or maybe not. More than just fighting partners, I think. Or, I don't think of him as just a fighting partner. I would like to be his friend… I mean, I hope we are already friends… because-"

"Dear God, make it stop. You'll never find out what he thinks of you unless you ask him 'cause like I said, I will never go into his mind."

"Oh! No no no! I wasn't asking you to!" I said quickly.

"I know. You know what else I know? Your thoughts about him. You may not know it yet, but I think you just might have feelings for Drake in a more than friendly way."

"Wha- B-but, I…. I mean, I never thought that once! Who says I do? H-how would you know…? I mean, like…-"

"You're doing it again."

"Oh… sorry." I said sheepishly.

"So then, if you're saying in a subtle way that you don't like him, I'm allowed to flirt with him?" She asked with an expectant look. Something flared inside me.

"You're 'allowed' to do what you want. I don't make your choices."

"But it'd be alright with you?" She asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Whatever." I said, and stomped up the stairs.

June's POV

Ha ha! I got her now! This could turn to be a very interesting game. I then became aware of a presence. It was an ability that came with my power, so if I couldn't see a person, I could still enter their mind.

But I knew it wasn't Kaya. So it was Drake.

"Have you been standing there the whole time, Drake?" I asked, pretty sure he had been.

He said nothing, and I felt the presence disappear.

A'N: How do you like the new edition? I didn't warn you that there would be a new character… but she's pretty cool, eh? I like her personality. Anyway, review please! :)


	11. Becoming Accustomed

Kaya's POV

A day had passed, and we became settled in. June had got Drake some undercover clothes for leaving the house.

June and I exchanged a few questions, such as 'Was it Caine's plan for you to be here?' (No) and 'Is Perdidio Beach staying sane? Coates sure isn't…' (No).

I decided if I was going to stay here, I might as well go see Sam for confirmation and to avoid suspicion, so I did. Once I arrived at the house June told me belonged to him and Astrid, I knocked.

Astrid answered the door, and then cocked her head to the side.

"Who are you?" She asked.

"I'm Kaya Lacon. I used to go to your school." I said.

"Oh! Yes, I remember now. Why are you here?"

"I would like to speak to Sam please."

"Alright… I'll get him. Why don't you come inside?" She offered.

"Oh, okay."

I stepped inside, and sat on a couch, preparing myself. I needed to be convincing and I needed to gain Sam's trust. Then he appeared, startling me out of my thoughts. He looked surprised.

"It's you!" He exclaimed, looking all around me for anyone else. But Drake didn't know I was here.

"Don't worry. I would like to switch sides. I left Drake and the other Coates kids behind. June let me in. I would like to live in your town in June's house, if you don't mind." I said.

"Really… June, huh? And she just let you in her house. Well, then you're not lying, so I don't see why not. But, are you positive you have completely forgotten Drake?" He asked skeptically.

"Yes, I have realized what a heartless, psychopathic, killing machine Drake really is." I said. A stab of anger hit me in the chest, but I kept my stony expression.

"Good. But don't double cross us. We have Coates out numbered. We won once, we'll win again. But how the hell did you just disappear when I was shooting fire at you?"

"I understand. But you can trust me. And I can teleport. More than one person." I said.

"…I'll try. I see. Interesting power. That could come in handy. As for food, we have a system working out.

"My friend Quinn goes out and catches fish, and we hunt animals and pick fruit and vegetables, which can all be found at the market where the mall… was." He told me.

"Got it. Thank you. Now, I wouldn't want to intrude, so I'll just be on my way. But I have one question." I said.

"And what would that be?"

"When I came here, there were no guards except for June. Why was that?" I asked.

"Orsay…" He whispered.

"What?"

"Nothing. I'm not sure. Probably taking a break. June is perfectly capable of taking on many at a time." He says with a smirk.

'_But she's so small…'_ I thought.

"Okay, well, I'll just be going then." I said. But I was suspicious. Guards don't all take a break at once. And who is Orsay?

When I got back, I found the house empty, but I saw the back door was open, so I went through it.

I was not expecting what I saw. Drake and June, fighting very fiercely.

June jumped in the air, twirled gracefully, and came down with her foot aimed at Drake's chest. He moved to the side just in time, grabbed her leg, and slammed her on her stomach.

She jumped up as quickly as she had gone down, avoiding the lashes of his whip, doing flips and cartwheels and moves that required extreme flexibility. She kicked high in the air, and Drake just managed to avoid an uppercut in the chin by ducking.

On the ground, he swung his leg around, knocking her off her feet, and pounced on her, whip raised. But he didn't slash her with it, which confused me. Weren't they trying to kill each other?

But he did want to. I could see it. His whip was twitching; his eyes had… an eerie look to them. But June showed no fear.

"Were you just going to stand by and let him kill me, Kaya?" June said with a smirk, her eyes not moving off Drake. This whole time I just had been staring, my mind swirling with confusing thoughts. It had happened so quickly.

"… Huh?" I asked frantically.

June laughed and Drake climbed off of her, reluctantly lowering his whip to his side. She jumped up quicker than I could ever manage. How were they both so fast?

"Why were you guys attacking each other?" I asked.

"It's called sparring, silly! We were practicing hand to hand combat." June said, as though it was obvious.

But neither one had a scratch on them, nor were they out of breath. Just a bit dirty.

"…Oh." Was all I could manage. How dumb of me.

"Well, care to join us? " Drake said.

"But, I… I can't fight." I said, ashamed. Drake raised an eyebrow.

"You're kidding. Not at all?"

"No…" I said. They exchanged a glance.

"Then we'll teach you!" June exclaimed.

"We?" Drake said.

"Of course!"

"…I'll help once you give her the basics." He sighed.

"What? Why?" She whined

"Because who has more patience here?" Drake asked, glaring at her.

"…Fine."

"You guys! I don't really need to know this! It's okay!" I said. June rolled her eyes, grabbed my hand and pulled me to take Drake's place, who had already disappeared into the house.

"Let's see what you've got." June said with a smirk.

**-Break-**

In ten minutes, my butt was sore from falling on it so much, my hands were scraped from breaking my fall, and I had bruises and cuts everywhere. If June really wanted to kill me, I would be dead.

I was sprawled out on the ground after a face plant, when I groaned,

"I suck… I can't do this."

"You're a beginner! You've learned to deflect a little bit, and I'll start teaching you some moves tomorrow. It's late, I'm hungry, so I say we eat dinner." She said.

I grunted in agreement, and she helped me up. After I was changed, I came downstairs to a disgusting stench.

"Ugh, what is that?" I asked. June turned towards me.

"Pea soup." She said simply.

"Well, it smells revolting."

"'Kay, well, have a super time starving!" She chirped. I couldn't help but laugh a little. I kind of like June now, though at first she really aggravated me.

Drake didn't come down to eat, even though June told him it was ready. So after dinner, I decided to take him a bowl. I put it down on a side table next to the bed, where he was asleep.

I turned to leave, but then I heard a crack and barely avoided Drake's whip. He lashed again and again, and I yelped as I tried to avoid all of his attacks, and somehow I got behind him, so I jumped on his back before he could turn around.

"Stop it Drake!" I shouted. He snickered.

"Not much, but I see June taught you how to deflect… a little."

"Drake! You could have killed me!" I said, glaring at him.

"Yeah whatever. Would you get off me now?" He said. I jumped down from him, slightly embarrassed.

Then I notice that I've been cut on my arms and legs, but not deeply. I sighed.

"Honestly, Drake. I'm going to go wash up and go to bed. I'm exhausted." I said, and was about to leave, when Drake said something.

"Uh…" He trailed off.

"Hm? What is it Drake?" I asked. He looked like he had many questions.

"…Never mind." He said, and then turned away from me.

"Okay…? See you tomorrow morning." I said uncertainly. He sighed. I left his room, washed up, and went to bed.

June's POV

I managed to jump away from the door just in time to hide when Kaya opened the door and went to her room. Well, sort of our room.

I have my own house, but I live alone, and so it's a bit lonely. I hang out here most of the time, spending the night often.

I knew what Drake wanted to say. This morning, we had a conversation.

"_Where's Kaya?" Drake asked me when he walked down the stairs._

"_Probably exploring the town." I said, deciding to lie since I didn't know if Kaya wanted Drake to know._

"_Alright." He said. _

_I was so incredibly curious, that I let myself just read what he was thinking at the moment, but nothing deeper. _

_He was thinking of the night before, what I said about Kaya liking him. He thought it was idiotic and that she would just end up hurting herself. He also thought that he could never like her back… it just wasn't possible… this thought seemed to stir some emotion, and he figured that this was no good for him._

_That maybe he should leave._

_I withdrew before he could notice, and snapped him out of his thoughts, literally._

"_Space cadet." I laugh. He growled._

"_Whatever. Hey, since your power is useless for fighting, how do you defend yourself in fights?" He asked._

"_What, you think I'm a weakling?" I countered._

"_Actually, yeah."_

"_Oh, I'll prove you wrong, you son of a bitch." I said. And that's when our sparring started._

But hey, if he's not ready to talk about it, that's his problem. I'm guessing he hasn't had much experience with these things. I snickered and walked to my room.

I don't hate Drake. Sure, he's cruel, and sadistic, for that matter. But I didn't really _know _him. But, I did know that if he left, it would be better for Kaya. Kaya was very sweet and innocent.

I usually meddle with stuff like this. But it's definitely not my business.

And what happens happens sometimes. There's life for you, folks.

A/N: So… You like? Hmm? Review please!


	12. Disappear

Kaya's POV

I wake up from a peaceful slumber, sit up, then proceed to yawn and stretch, feeling refreshed.

I walk down the stairs to find my mom preparing a delicious looking meal; Fluffy chocolate pancakes, juicy sausages that are the perfect shade of brown, and sizzling bacon, fresh from the skillet, all with a side of fresh fruit.

I lick my lips and sit down. Once I pick up my fork and am about to take a bite, it disappears. I gasp from surprise, and look up to my mother, who is no where to be found. I hear a clicking sound behind me and turn around.

There, is my mom, standing with a gun in our living room. She moves the gun to point at her head. I shout at her several times, but my throat makes no noise. I try to run towards her, but I'm frozen in place. It's like I'm not even in control of my actions.

_Like watching from another body._

Then, she pulls the trigger.

**-Break-**

I woke up screaming. I found myself drenched in cold sweat, and panting like I had just sprinted ten miles. I then discovered June staring at me, looking alarmed.

"Kaya, what's wrong?"

I… I'm fine." I said hoarsely. I cleared my throat.

"Just a nightmare, huh? Not uncommon nowadays. C'mon, let's get you some food."

All I could do was nod. I showered and changed and walked down the stairs to a breakfast of cabbage stew.

I had to give it to June, she was a great cook. She could make _cabbage_ taste good. After I ate, I felt much better, and no longer felt shaken from my dream. Then I noticed something.

"Where's Drake?" I asked. Her expression looked somewhat upset and she avoided my gaze.

"June…?"

No answer.

"June, answer me!" I exclaimed.

"He's gone." She said suddenly.

"To where?"

"I don't know. He just left."

"Oh, well that's not such a big deal, June. Don't act all guilty. He'll be home by tonight." I said reassuringly.

"Kaya. You don't get it."

"Get what…?"

"That he's gone. And he's not coming back. He ditched us, is no longer teaming up with us."

This hit me like a ten ton truck. I was so stunned, so confused. Why would he leave me? We had stuck together since we met! He had even warmed up to me a bit! This made no sense! It was impossible, completely absurd to even think such a thing!

"Liar!" I accused.

"I'm afraid not." She said. I never noticed how dead serious she had been all morning.

"No… No! He'll be back!"

I began to shout random obscenities until June came over to me and slapped me so hard I saw stars. I stopped abruptly and stared at her.

"It's okay, Kaya. It's better that he left."

"No, it's not! You barely know him!" I shouted. I still refused to believe it.

"I can see you made an impact on him. He left not only for himself, but for your sake as well. Trust me, it will be all right. I won't leave you, and we can live in Perdido Beach with no secrets to hide. Okay?"

"But-"

"Okay?" June interrupted.

"… Sure." I said. But I felt terrible.

She then pulled me into an unexpected hug. I couldn't remember the last time I truly hugged someone… Sad, isn't it? So I hugged back, but refused to cry. I was not a baby. I could hold myself together. After all, I'd been doing it for years.

"Thanks." I muttered. She just pulled away and smirked.

"Everyone needs a good slap once in a while. Don't tempt me to do it again, because I will."

Reg. POV

Drake knew he had to leave. He wouldn't join up with Caine again. There was no way in hell. What could he do? So far he had no plan.

That whole fiasco with Kaya was idiotic. He thought it was revolting how different he had acted.

He should have killed Kaya.

He heaved a sigh from the thoughts that brought.

He wouldn't be in this mess, and he could be better off. Not where he was now. Living in Perdido Beach. What a stupid idea. People loathed him, and would never feel differently. If they found out… ha, what, they'd start a riot? He'd kill them all. It didn't matter anyway.

He didn't need to be there. He had no friends, and didn't want any.

Maybe he would go back to Coates. See if he could make off with his soldiers, form some sort of attack/raid on Perdido Beach. If he wanted to, he _could_ go back to Caine. He might beat him around a little, but he knew that Caine needed him. But then he would have to swallow his dignity.

And that's not such an easy thing for Drake Merwin to do.

**-Break-**

June had moved into Kaya's house with what little food and belongings she had, claiming that this house was much better than her own (when in all actuality, she was just lonely).

June went ahead and donated Drake's stuff to a charity that hadn't been getting much. It was only some over sized clothes, a worn out hat, halfway broken sunglasses, and a very small handgun with only about two bullets left, but they were overjoyed. People in Perdido Beach were greedy. They had no choice.

The only reason she did so was because she often found Kaya outside his room, one hand raised a bit in the air as if she was going to knock, but paused.

So after everything was gone, June always left the door open, and used the extra blankets and pillows for her and Kaya, who had decided to still share a room.

Even though Kaya usually didn't feel her best, she never sulked. She always tried to cheer up, and tried to have fun with June.

But then, one night after dinner, when they were sitting close together, talking about their favorite foods, Kaya had a vision.

But it was a repeat.

Kaya had repeats all the time. That's what she named them. Obviously, it was a vision she had already seen. This usually meant it would happen soon.

_Diana went flying, lifeless, through the air, landing with a sickening crunch on a big rock in the distance. Drake had whipped her, after she pushed him too far._

"_Diana!" Caine wails. He spins on Drake, furious, and lifts him up. He tries to throw the uranium at him, but he barely avoids it, and it flies into the mine behind them. It starts to collapse._

_Drake is trying to escape consistently, but it is no use. He's also trying desperately to talk Caine out of it, but it isn't getting through._

_So Caine thrusts Drake into the mine right as it collapses. It happens that fast. The last thing Kaya sees is Drake's writhing, helpless body falling down with the debris, huge, heavy rocks blocking her view._

_He couldn't have survived._

"Drake!" Kaya gasped, jumping to her feet.

"Kaya! Was that you… having a vision?" June asked. Her eyes had just glazed over.

"Drake… he's…. in trouble. Or going to be."

June stared at her.

"We have to go help him!" Kaya exclaimed.

"…Are you sure that's such a good idea?"

"Are you kidding? We know what's going to happen! We can help! If we don't it will be partially our faults that he is dead. I don't know about you, but I can't shoulder that. So I'm going. And I'd really like it if you came too."

June groaned.

"You're a pain in the ass."

"So I've heard."

A/N: Review please! :D


	13. Departure

Kaya's POV

"_What?_" she exclaimed.

So June was freaking out.

I didn't see why. After all, I had just told her where we needed to go. To some sort of deserted mine that I guess was famous.

"Did you seriously not hear me?"

"Kaya! That's where the Gaiaphage lives!"

"…Oh. Well I guess that might be a problem." I said.

"'I guess that might be a problem'," June mocked in a high pitched voice. "Hell yeah it'll be a problem!"

"Do I _really_ sound like that?"

"Gah!" June groaned.

"Do you have any idea what that thing does to your mind? It hooks and then never lets go! It _stays_ in your head. It can communicate with you. You do not want that." She said.

"Look, this won't be a problem. We'll be there briefly, and we won't actually go inside. But I know it will happen soon! And we have to leave!"

"But I-"

"C'mon!"

I ran up the stairs and packed flashlights and all of the batteries I could find into a worn out messenger bag. Then I packed some blankets, before going downstairs and packing what small portions of portable food we had, and a few canteens of water.

Then I slung the bag over my shoulder, took June's wrist and dragged her out the door. She wasn't really resisting much, but she was complaining.

I saw a boy with blond hair and glasses walking with a girl that had long, brown hair pulled back into a ponytail, happily chattering away.

"Hey, Jack, Breeze, could you come over here for a second?" June called out. I gave her a confused glance, but she ignored it. They walked over to us.

"What's up, June?" Breeze said.

"Well, I'm hungry." The three of them laughed.

"But seriously, can you guys go tell Sam that we're going to go on sort of a camping trip? Kaya won't stop bothering me about seeing the rest of the FAYZ."

"Now?" Jack asked.

"Oh I'm sorry, am I interrupting some sort of date here?" June asked innocently. Jack blushed and looked at his feet, while Brianna just gave a shy smile.

"N-no! It's not like that! We… We were just… uh…" Jack stuttered. June chuckled.

"Nah… You're not interrupting…" Breeze said, looking a bit disappointed. But then she brightened up again.

"We can go right now! C'mon Jack!" She said excitedly, and put his arms around her neck from behind.

"Wait, no! Not again! Brianna!" He cried. She winced.

"Jesus, Jack! Lighten up on the grip! You're going to break my neck!" She said.

He looked worried and loosened his grip. She used the slack as an advantage to hoist him up so he was fully on her back. A light blush spread on his cheeks, but before he could try to break free, she just… ran off.

But it wasn't just running. Just a slight blur. Of course… she has super speed… and he probably had super strength considering what she had said to him earlier.

June just smiled and shook her head.

"Those two…" She trailed off and began to walk off into the woods. I processed what had just happened a bit more, and then ran to go catch up with her.

**-Break-**

Reg. POV

Within about 2 seconds, Jack and Brianna had arrived at Sam and Astrid's house. Brianna let go of Jack and he fell on the street, the world spinning around him.

"C'mon Jack, get up!" Brianna said.

"Why do you keep doing that?" Jack whined.

"Because, it would take forever if we didn't!"

"Yeah, like three minutes."

"Just get up." She said, grabbing his hand to help.

Once he was on his feet, they walked over to the front door and knocked. Astrid answered after a minute or so.

"Oh hey guys, what's up?" Astrid asked.

"We were told to deliver a message." Brianna answered.

"Oh, what is it?"

"Can we come inside so we can tell both you and Sam?" Jack asked.

"Of course."

Only once they were all sitting on the couch in the living room did they begin.

"Well June told us that she and Kaya were leaving Perdido Beach temporarily to go… camping, and to explore the rest of the FAYZ." Said Jack.

Sam narrowed his eyes.

"Hm…" He glanced at Astrid. She was staring at the carpet, looking deep in concentration.

"This sounds a bit… impractical, don't you think? This girl Kaya is from Coates, and who knows what they could be getting into…

"How about you two go ahead and follow them? We trust you and I'm sure you can catch up quickly, no? I'm sure you two can deliberate what is really happening and then report back in no time, correct? Not to mention how good of a team you two make. Super speed and super strength. That would definitely benefit a mission." Astrid said.

"Awesome! Sure, we'd love to! Let's go, Jack!" Brianna said, standing abruptly.

"But…" Jack was cut off by her hand grabbing his and being dragged out the door.

"Oh god, you're not going to make me-" But he was already being piggy-backed at a speed faster than a bullet.

**-Break-**

Kaya's POV

We kept going for a long time. I pushed myself as far as I could go, before I plopped down onto a rock from exhaustion. June gladly sat beside me.

"Are we almost there?" I asked.

"Pssh." She laughed.

"So we're close?" I asked hopefully.

"Oh, hell no."

I groaned.

"Hey, it's a long distance without a car."

But I wasn't listening anymore. I was being sucked into a vision.

_It was in the woods, but it was dark. The full moon was the only source of light, and it left a glow to the environment around me. Through thick, hanging vines was a clearing._

_That's where I spotted June and Drake. Her hands were against his chest, curled into loose fists, her head tilted so their eyes could meet. His arms were around her waist, and they were leaning towards each other. _

"_No!" I shouted. But they couldn't hear me. It was useless. I tried to move, but I couldn't. I never could in my visions._

_Just as their lips were brushing, June turned her head towards me, and winked. As if she really could see me. Then she kneed him in the groin._

_But instead of doubling over, he turned into a flock of birds._

I snapped back into reality, and grabbed my aching head.

"Did it work?"

I turned to face June. She had a look of eagerness about her.

"Did what work?" I grumbled, still angry about my vision.

"Did you see it?"

It was her voice, but her lips weren't moving. I was so shocked, I fell off of the rock.

"H-how did you…"

"I thought I'd use you as my guinea pig to see if I could put images in people's minds. And talk to them. Did you see the vision?"

I punched her in the arm.

"_You_ made that vision?"

"_You_ call that a punch?" She countered.

"I can't believe you!" I said with a huff. She smirked.

"Oh, your reaction was priceless. But seriously, this could help us a lot."

"Yeah… I know."

"Sorry." She said.

"For what?" I asked.

"Giving you that vision. Did you really believe it was real?"

"Yeah… I did. It… wasn't a good feeling."

"I could tell from your thoughts." She muttered. I didn't respond.

Because her vision made me realize something very important.

A/N: Okay, well I really like the pairing of Jack and Brianna, so I added them in for a little chunk of the story, but they won't be in the whole rest of the story. Yay or Nay? Review please!


	14. Unfolding Before Your Eyes

Reg. POV

Once they were deep into the forest, Brianna stopped. Jack once again fell off her back, and his body seriously wanted nothing but to puke his lungs out. It's not like he had much in his stomach to come up anyway.

Luckily he didn't, but instead just lay on the floor, holding his head. Brianna winced from the stabbing pain in her stomach for burning so many calories, but she ignored it.

"Jack, get up!" She whined. Did she have any idea what this felt like?

"We have to go!"

"Then why did you stop in the first place?" Jack grumbled.

"To let you rest. And now you're rested."

"You know, at this rate June will sense our presence or they'll hear us coming." He said.

"But… we can just go for a bit more, right? And then at night when they're asleep, we'll catch up just to know where they are, then make camp around a mile away." Brianna said

"…Can't we just walk? We have to have covered at least half the distance they have." He asked.

"…Fine. You're so boring!"

The only reason she had agreed was another pang in her gut.

After walking about a mile, Jack told Brianna to have a small snack that she had packed (she stopped at home before going into the forest) while he walked ahead a little to see if they were close.

As Brianna was finishing a small portion of cold fish from Quinn, Jack was running towards her and tackled her. They tumbled back into the bushes.

"J-Jack!" She exclaimed, her face turning a pale pink.

"Shh!"

Through the bushes' leaves, Brianna could spot Kaya walking around their area.

"Hm… I could have sworn I heard a sort of rustling sound or something… Maybe June's right. Maybe I am going crazy. It is the FAYZ, right?" She said to herself.

Then she suddenly inhaled sharply, and she held her head. It looked like her eyes were vacant, although the two couldn't tell from the distance.

Then she snapped back to reality, almost literally, her neck tilting backwards slightly.

"Oh no…. I have to tell June!" Kaya said, and she rushed off in the opposite direction.

Each of them relaxed instantly and let out a breath of relief.

"Jack…" Brianna sang. He turned his head towards her and blinked, only to notice him pinning her down, and under his strength there was no way she could get up. He blushed and scrambled up.

"Oh… sorry." He muttered. She just laughed.

"So what was that with Kaya? Why did she just like, have a spasm?"

"A spasm? I think that's a bit overreacting, Brianna."

"Still."

"I really don't know. Sam said her power was teleporting more than one person, right? But her hands… they were turned upward. As if she was using them. So she must have been lying about her power."

"Huh. I guess so. But June probably knew that. So why did they lie to Sam? Are they double crossing us, do you think? Kaya _did_ come from Coates, but they're not going in that direction."

"Yeah… I don't really know. I guess we'll just go ahead and see where they are going." Jack answered.

"Yep. Well, it's evening already; we'll just go and see if they're moving on. If so, we obviously follow, if not, we'll make camp here. Oh, and I might have forgotten to mention something."

"What would that be?"

"…I only own one sleeping bag."

**-Break-**

Kaya's POV

I rushed back over to June, trying to avoid tripping over logs and tree roots and whatnot. Once I was there, I took a second to catch my breath.

"Oh hey Kaya. Long time no see."

"I...had.. A.. vision..." I said in between pants. Unfortunately, it sounded like I was slurring drunken words.

She looked at me like I had just threatened to stab her with a spoon.

"I had a vision." I said once I had caught my breath. Her eyes glinted and I could feel her in my head.

"You had it again? What does that mean?"

"Well, to be honest, this has never happened to me before. The same vision so many times. It could mean the chances of it not happening are becoming slimmer, or worse, that it's set in stone. But I refuse to admit that, because we'll get there.

"Having it twice in the same day probably means it will happen around tomorrow night, maybe? So I say we keep moving until late at night, rest a little, and then keep moving so we get there in time." I finished.

June raised an eyebrow. "Determined, are we?"

"I think you can figure that one out." I said.

Yeah, I was determined. I was kind of like a shark. Keep moving forward, don't look back. I had to just keep going, going, going. I _would_ get to Drake in time.

**-Break-**

It was nighttime, and we were beyond tired. No matter how many short naps we took turns having, it wasn't enough.

But I was going to deal with it. I also had to deal with a cranky June. She snapped at everything I said, and complained when she stumbled over various things lying on the forest floor.

Not to mention the red marks I had on my arms and legs from waking her up from her naps.

"Stop thinking so loudly…" June whined.

"I'm not! I'm thinking normally! Just don't read my mind if it annoys you so much!"

"But it's the only thing keeping me awake..."

"You're impossible."

"Shut up." She barked.

"So how close are we?"

"Close enough."

"Really, June?" She heaved a dramatic sigh, as if answering my question took as much effort as picking up an elephant.

"We'll probably make it there in time if we sleep."

"….Fine."

As soon as the words left my mouth, she was setting up our tent, and once that was done, opened her sleeping bag, crawled inside, and fell asleep right as the zipper closed.

Funny how she was only following my cues. I knew she was an independent person, but she knew how much this meant to me, so she let me map out our movements. I respected that.

I sighed and shook my head, taking my place in my sleeping bag next to her.

**-Break-**

Reg. POV

Only once Kaya and June had for sure fallen asleep, did Brianna and Jack set up their tent.

"You can sleep in it. I'll just, stay awake or something." Jack mumbled.

"No way! That's so unfair! Can you just suck it up and come in here?" Brianna said in a hushed tone from her spot in the sleeping bag.

"Look, no. That'd be so…. Never mind."

"Oh… well if I'm not a person you'd prefer sleeping next to…"

"What? No! That's not what I- God Brianna! How do you twist everything up like that?"

"You know, there's a bit of a draft. I'm so cold." She said dramatically.

"…There's not even any wind." Brianna narrowed her eyes, and then changed her expression to a pout.

"Please Jack? I'm really tired and I know you are too, and we have to wake up at the same time they do, so just c'mon. You want to go to sleep as much as I do. Which is a lot. Plus, it's only for a few times."

Jack seemed to be waning in his argument. She was right, and he was tired, and he did feel bad, and…

Oh, what the hell.

"Fine." He sighed. She smiled and scooted over a bit. Once the tent was zipped, he walked over to the sleeping bag, took off his glasses, and crawled inside.

He noticed the increase in warmth immediately. It was so comfortable that he relaxed. A little. But he couldn't stop the ever increasing blush on his face.

Just as he was falling asleep, he felt someone leaning into him.

A fifth grade tech savvy should not have to deal with these things.

**-Break-**

Kaya's POV

I woke up at dawn, just like I always did, and shook June awake, who groaned and mumbled something incomprehensible. I was already rolling up my sleeping bag and hurling the backpack over my shoulder.

"June, get up."

"Go to hell."

I sighed and unzipped her sleeping bag, grabbing her wrists and tugging. The jerky movement forced her eyes open and she glared.

"Fine!"

Once we were all ready to go, we did. We traveled all day, resting only a few times and only ate about ten saltine crackers each.

June said we were getting closer. I was extremely afraid that I would have the vision again. If I did, then it could happen in a matter of moments or minutes.

"What do you think Drake will do if we do save his life?" June asked suddenly.

"…I don't know. Whatever he wants to. He can go live alone or maybe create some sort of alliance or maybe gather his soldiers or something."

"So you're assuming he won't want to come back?"

"I guess I am." I said.

"Well, all we can do is wait and see, rather than make assumptions, right?" She asked.

"Sure." I said with a smile.

"I think we should get there in about an hour without resting." June said.

"But the sun's already setting. I hope we make it. How do you know the way to this place so well anyway?"

"The detail is hard to forget. I've been here twice. Luckily, I never actually went into the mine. But a few kids did, and they can't erase what they saw. I know because I read their minds."

We didn't talk much after that.

**-Break-**

Reg. POV

Jack and Brianna traveled at a healthy distance away from June and Kaya. Their morning having been a bit awkward, they traveled in silence, neither complaining, and neither maintaining an optimistic atmosphere.

It was getting dark, and flashlights would give away their position, so the only light was the thin white crescent hanging in the night sky.

Exhaustion was creeping up on them, and they mindlessly pushed forward, their instinct the only thing keeping them quiet.

They weren't being particularly good spies. They hadn't heard any conversations between the two subjects, and all of the data they had gathered so far was incomplete, and there was nothing to prove it.

They just hoped the outcome would piece everything together.

Soon they noticed that they had arrived at an old fashioned western town that looked run down and abandoned.

Having no bushes or trees to hide behind anymore, Jack and Brianna crept along behind buildings and whatever they could find. When they saw Kaya and June stop at the mouth of a mine, they hid behind a small shack a short distance away.

Drake, Caine, and Diana were standing at the mine, and suddenly Drake lashed out and whipped Diana straight across the head. She went flying backwards, her skull landing directly onto a boulder nearby.

"Diana!" Caine wailed.

Jack and Brianna exchanged glances, then intertwined their fingers, and watched the scene unfold before their eyes.

A/N: A cliffie! :D Sorry it took so long to update. The next chapter will be up soon! Tell me what you think please!


	15. Concluding Predicaments

Kaya's POV

I wasted no time. As soon as Caine's hands went out and Drake began to lift into the air, I ran full speed ahead and tackled Caine head on.

He fell over, knocked backwards by only a few feet. We landed on the ground with a thud, and then he looked out, past me, his mouth open in awe.

I climbed off of him only to see him unmoving. I looked around and found June, staring at him with a look that was eerily intense.

Ah, she was putting a vision in her mind. Drake was staring at us with such a shell-shocked face that it was unnerving.

I went over to Diana, who was lying unconscious.

"June, tell him that if he doesn't attack us, he can still find Lana to heal her." June nodded a little, and Caine's eyes focused a bit, looking in different directions. They paused on Drake, looking spiteful, but then he found June and stared at her.

"Go. Find her. Save Diana. She won't last for much longer. Don't resist, and don't bother to kill Drake, it'd be a waste of your time." She said.

He paused, and then nodded, looking desperate. He turned and ran into the mouth, just as Sam Temple emerged from the bushes, looking battered and bloody.

The marks of a whip. I winced when I remembered the white hot pain searing throughout my body as the whip slashed away my flash. Imagining that all over your body… I shivered.

"Sam!" June said, and ran to him, inspecting his wounds.

"June… what are you doing here?" He rasped out. Then he located Drake, and tried to raise his arm, but June gently lowered it.

"Lana. Caine will get her soon. You either follow or wait. But we're leaving."

"Wait… Why are you here?"

"I took a camping trip and stumbled upon this mess. Good luck, Sam." June said, knowing full well that he was aware of her lie.

She walked off towards the woods and I hesitated, glancing at Drake. He was staring at the ground.

Once Sam had stumbled into the mine, Drake spoke.

"Why." It was barely even a question. He sounded so… empty.

"I… I had a vision and I…"

"That doesn't answer anything."

"I didn't want you to die."

"Why?"

"We went over this earlier. Look, you have a choice. You always have had a choice. No matter what. Anyway, you can come, where you'll be welcome… by June and I, at least, or you can go off on your own. I'm sorry if I… affected your life in a bad way. If it's time to say our good-byes, than… so be it."

He was quiet for a long time. I caught June staring at us from a distance.

"I… I'm Drake Merwin. Everyone… fears me. It's supposed to be that way. Why are you so different? Why do I not affect you? I am fully aware of the things I have done that would horrify people, and I'm okay with it. I love it, actually. So why?"

"Because… not everything about you is frightening, Drake. I'll tell you, I have been scared of the things you did, of the things you do. But, I just… that's not all I see. Maybe I'm crazy or just plain stupid. But, it's just how I see you."

"I don't know what to do anymore. I like… to kill. To… murder, to cause pain. I know that everyone thinks that is sick. That I'm crazy. Hell, I probably am. But, I always followed Caine. If I even tried to attack Perdido Beach, they would kill me alone. If I took my soldiers, they'd still outrank us.

"I just… can't win. Even if I could, then what? Obey the Gaiaphage for the rest of my life? There's just, not much left for me anymore besides my vengeance and my anger and my lust for causing pain. I had no choice but to leave you. Some part of me was telling me that I was doing something wrong. That this wasn't me. And now… there _is_ nothing left."

"But… if you want… there's me. And June. And others, who might warm up to you. I can help you, I think. I can try. "

"Well, I guess we'll see how things go. But I haven't changed. I don't know if I will. Don't count on it, but I… I guess I'll try too. I still have all of these angry emotions begging to explode out of me at any moment. So, don't assume. Just… wait."

"I will, Drake Merwin. I will. Come on, it's time to go." He nodded, but walked a distance behind me. If he ran, I'd understand. Still, every now and again I'd turn back. As we approached the greenery, I took it all in.

To think it all started with grocery shopping. The whipping, the alliance with Drake Merwin, the kiss, the beatings he took, the fleeing Coates, hiding in Perdido Beach with June Price, the training, Drake's departure, my visions, going two days through the woods, saving his life, and now this.

I had penetrated one of Drake's many shields. I had an affect on him that no one else had. With all of my willpower, I do intend to shoot through all of those shields, which has not been done. Drake used to be alone in the world, just like me.

But now, I plan to accompany him.

**Epilogue: **

Jack and Brianna stared, shocked into silence by the scene that had just happened before their eyes.

"Wha… Did that just… I…" Jack stuttered.

"We have to warn them. Drake is coming. He will kill us. We have to warn them!" Brianna said.

"Yeah! We have to form a group to fight back! Defeat Drake Merwin, finally!" Jack cheered.

"Hop on." Brianna said, and lugged him onto her back before rushing into the woods, expecting to arrive in Perdido Beach very soon.

Where the kids roamed, where the kids stood unprepared, having no idea the wave of terror about to spread through the town like a wildfire.

This was the FAYZ, after all.

**A/N: End. Yes, epilogue, so I will be making a sequel, unless you wish for me not to. I rather liked how I ended it, although I feel it needs more. But the sequel won't come out for about another month or so, after I finish the other story I'm working on, and perhaps a one-shot for one of my many infatuations. :) **

**I really hoped you enjoyed this fanfic, because I worked hard on it, and I thank all of my reviewers and subscribers for their patience and encouragement! Sorry this last chapter was short. I hope the wait is worth the sequel! I shall not stop writing. :D**


	16. Sequel!

Hey, guys! I'm just about to update the very first chapter to the sequel of 'Cold Gaze', called 'Steel Eyes'. Check it out, you can find it on my page!

~popcornchicken66


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